Frozen Celebration
by elsa-frozemyheart
Summary: A collection of drabbles and ficlets I wrote in the days leading up to Frozen coming out in theatres.
1. Ice Palace Under Siege

**Prompt: I was inspired by bstormhands' drabble, entitled Marshmallow Defeated.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen, nor do I claim to own it, or any of the characters from it.**

**Trigger Warning: Major character death in this one. Sorry to start you out with such a... shock.**

* * *

Elsa panted as she glared at the man in uniform in front of her, keeping her hands at the ready to defend herself. She knew there had been something about that Prince Hans that had unsettled her from the very beginning.

"Queen Elsa, please, it doesn't have to be this way!" Hans held a spear in front of himself, watching the Snow Queen's every move intently.

"You come to _my_ ice palace, attack _my_ sentinel, and come after _me_, and then tell me that it doesn't have to be this way." She scoffed, waving a hand and pinning a guard to the wall as he charged her, being very careful not to harm him. "I'm afraid you and I both know that you have other plans." She waved her other hand as more guards attacked, pinning each of them by the jacket, as well, before flicking her wrist, causing a doorway to appear in the thick wall of ice, through which she took her leave, attempting to throw Hans off and lose him.

Her actions proved to be for naught as she turned a corner and found herself face-to-face once again with the prince. She turned to go back from where she had come, but in her shock, she had inadvertently froze the wall shut. She turned back to face the prince, keeping her calm and holding her head high, even as he cornered her, his spear pointed at her heart.

"Give up, Queen Elsa. You're cornered. I win. Game over." He smirked triumphantly.

Elsa slowly held her hands up, reverting back into a defensive stance. "Cockiness never won anyone anything."

"Perhaps not. But I have managed to win your sister's heart, and that's all I need for my plans."

Elsa raised an eyebrow, but nothing more. He was only trying to get to her, and she wasn't going to give in that easily.

"Yes, Anna and I are still engaged and set on getting married, despite your disapproval." His smirk darkened into something much more evil. "All she wanted was your approval, just for you to _notice_ her even. The night you left, she cried. She came to the conclusion that you didn't care about her anymore." He was lying through his teeth, but Elsa didn't need to know that.

Elsa felt like the breath had been knocked out of her. That couldn't be true. Anna surely must know that she cared so much for her. Everything she had done, she had done for Anna. To keep her safe, so she couldn't hurt her again. To make her happy. The slight smirk she had been wearing fell as her eyes filled with tears.

Hans smirked, immediately noticing her change in demeanor."And she decided that if _you_didn't care for _her_ anymore, then why should _she_ care for _you_." He waited for her reaction with a smug smirk.

Elsa shook her head as a single tear trailed down her cheek, freezing halfway down. "You're lying!" she choked out, her guard falling as her arms fell to her side. He had to be lying. Anna would never be like that.

"If I were lying, I wouldn't have heard Anna herself say that she hated you and never wanted to see you again." Hans watched as the Snow Queen's head fell, a single shaky sob escaping before she regained her composure and looked back up at him. He could see the look in her eyes. She was a broken woman. He had won.

"If what you say is true, then you have my word that I will not fight against you any longer." She closed her eyes. "Whatever it is that you want me to do, I will comply."

"Perfect." Hans put a firm hand on her shoulder, pushing her in front of him as they began to walk, keeping his spear pressed against the middle of her back, just in case she tried anything. They walked out to the balcony, and Hans stopped her. "Can you release my men from here?"

Elsa nodded silently, closed her eyes, and slowly raised a hand. Within minutes, the guards had all found their way back to the balcony. At Hans' command, two of them were quick to each take an arm, restraining Elsa as Hans paced in front of her. He opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a roar. Everyone looked over as Marshmallow appeared at the bottom of the stairs, growling fiercely.

"Tell him to stand down," Hans commanded, pointing the spear at Elsa once again.

"Marshmallow, stand down, please. You have my word, I won't harm anyone." Hans watched, slightly confused by the nature of her words, as Elsa looked directly at Marshmallow, who stared back silently for a while before nodding and staying where he was.

"Now then. What to do with Queen Elsa. The Snow Queen." Hans began to pace in front of her again. "Your winter has threatened everyone in the kingdom, you ran from your throne. One could almost call what you've done an act of treason. And surely you know what the penalty for treason is."

Elsa took a deep breath and looked up at the prince in front of her. "But you were going to kill me today, regardless of this so-called act of treason. Just get it over with. End me." She looked back down at the ground. "End my pain."

Hans only smirked in response. "Call your sentinel up here. Now."

Elsa looked up, confused and alarmed. "You just had me silence him, and now you want him up here. Why?" She was a little afraid to ask.

Hans pressed the spear against her neck, effectively silencing her as a trickle of blood ran down her pale skin. "He's going to watch his creator perish."

Elsa's eyes grew wide. She had always regarded Marshmallow as if he were her own child. She had, after all, made him. And for the first time in her life, she begged. "No! Please! He's just a baby, he won't understand, please!" She fell to her knees. "Please…"

"Men, bring him up here!" Hans commanded, and the guards began to yell at Marshmallow, pointing their spears at him and jabbing at him, only angering him more than he already had been.

"Please…" Elsa had begun to weep. "He's just a baby… This isn't his fight, please, don't make him watch… _He's just a baby_…"

Marshmallow's roars began to echo around the ice palace as he fought against the guards. As more guards ran over to join the fight, the two that were restraining Elsa became distracted, and their grips loosened. Elsa took her chance and broke free, running away and towards the balcony.

"Stop her!" came Hans voice from somewhere behind her.

There was a sound of a crossbow firing, the thwip of an arrow sailing through the air. As Elsa leaped over the balcony railing, she heard the sound of flesh tearing, became aware of a searing pain in her back, and then her chest almost immediately afterward, but her only focus was getting to Marshmallow.

She landed on the hard ice with a dull thump, motionless as she gasped and panted for breath, blood slowly starting to pool around her. She looked up, vision hazy and blurry, as she tried to make something out, _anything_. Slowly, she realized that Marshmallow stood in front of her. With a single swipe of his arm, all of the guards were sent flying backwards, and he bounded to Elsa.

"Mama?" he asked, his deep, gruff voice edged with an uncharacteristic sadness and confusion. With hands that seemed far too gentle for such a giant creature, he scooped Elsa up, carefully cradling her in one hand.

Elsa looked up at him and gave him the best, weakest smile she could manage. "It's nothing, Marshmallow. Mama's okay." But she knew that by now even he had to know that that wasn't the case. She was losing far too much blood. She knew she was dying.

There was silence as Elsa looked up at him before the echo of footsteps sounded above them.

"Leave her. She won't last more than a few minutes more, at most." Hans' voice rang clear in the quiet, and the sound of marching footsteps slowly faded down the mountain.

Elsa looked down at her chest. The very tip of the arrow was protruding, and blood stained most of the front of her dress. She knew it should hurt, that she should be feeling pain, but she was just tired. So very tired.

"Mama?" Marshmallow's unusually quiet, grumbly voice brought Elsa out of her daze, and she looked up with another weak smile.

"My sweet little Marshmallow…" she said softly, weakly raising a hand to rest on one of his massive claws. "You be a good boy for mama while I'm gone, okay?" Her words had begun to slur together tiredly.

"Mama?" Marshmallow tilted his head and brought down a claw to gently nudge her cheek, eliciting a small, tired laugh from Elsa.

"You were always such a sweetheart… But so misunderstood…" She let her eyes slide closed, too tired to keep them open any longer. "Thank you for keeping everyone safe for me…" She rested her head back against his palm, her breathing slowing now.

There was a long, still silence on the peak of the North Mountain as Marshmallow watched as his mama took her last breaths, becoming still as he cradled her in his palm.

"…Mama?" he growled after a while. He nudged her cheek gently once again, frowning and letting out a gruff whimper when he got no response.

Not long after that, as Hans and his men marched down the mountain, the sound of a loud, heartbroken roar could be heard in the distance.


	2. A Princess Is Born

**Prompt: No prompt for this one, I just kinda swung it.**

* * *

Elsa was worried. There were weird scary sounds coming from mommy's bedroom, and daddy was pacing in front of the door, head held in one hand as he did so.

A muffled cry of pain sounded from the other side of the door, and Elsa decided she _definitely_ did not like this anymore. She stood up and ran to the bedroom door, pressing her tiny little pale hand against the dark wood. "M-mommy?" she whimpered, disregarding being proper and using the term "mother" as she had been told she should do by her governess. She heard her father sigh softly, and then she was being picked up. She looked up at him with wide eyes as he held her close. "What's wrong with m-mommy?" she asked innocently, looking up at him with teary eyes.

"Well, little snowflake, remember when we told you that mother was having a baby?" He waited for Elsa to nod timidly before continuing. "Well, the baby's getting ready to come out and meet you, snowflake." He tapped her tiny button nose gently, but Elsa's little face remained fixed with worry.

She opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by another cry of pain, and then sudden silence, followed shortly after by the angry cry of a newborn baby. Elsa looked up at her father, and then to the door as it opened. An older man came out and walked over to the King.

"A healthy baby girl, your Highness. You may go in and see them now." The King nodded his thanks and shifted Elsa a bit before quietly walking into the bedroom and to the Queen's bedside.

Elsa remained silent as she looked around, observing the nurse that stood to one side of the bed, tilting her head in confusion as she looked at the dark, rust-coloured stains on some of the bed sheets. She wasn't sure what that was, but it looked scary. She pouted. Finally, she looked to her mother, curiously eyeing the tiny bundle of blankets she was holding in her arms. "Mommy?" she asked quietly, reaching an arm out to her.

The Queen looked up with a weary smile and gently lifted Elsa out of her father's arms, settling her next to her side. "Little snowflake… This is your baby sister…" She shifted her arm so Elsa could finally lay eyes on the little baby.

The baby's tiny little head was covered in soft, reddish fuzz. _That must be her hair_, Elsa decided to herself. Her little eyes were closed as she slept angelically in her mother's embrace. Her tiny cheeks were rosy and pink, and Elsa could still see tears gathered at the corners of her eyes, from when she had been crying before. The baby was so tiny, and looked very fragile. Elsa was completely mesmerised.

"What's her name, mommy?" she whispered, not looking away from her beautiful little baby sister.

"Anna, sweetheart. Your sister's name is Anna."

"Anna…" she tested the name out quietly as she leaned closer. "Hello, Anna. I'm your big sister, Elsa." She reached over to gently brush a finger down one of her soft, pink little cheeks, causing her to wake a bit, her little arms flailing until her hand found Elsa's finger, closing around it and holding tight. Elsa beamed with pride, and was filled with a huge want to protect her new sister as she dozed back off to sleep. "I'm gonna take good care of you." She gently kissed her sister's tiny forehead, smiling when she cooed in her sleep. "I'm not ever going to let anyone hurt you. _I promise_."


	3. All Your Fault

**Prompt: No prompt.**

**Trigger Warning: Suicide is a main focus in this story, so please, ****_please_**** don't read if you're worried you might get triggered.**

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Elsa hadn't left her room in five days. She'd numbed herself to the gnawing hunger in her stomach until it had eventually disappeared altogether. She hadn't changed her clothes, and she was sure that she looked nothing as a princess should. But it didn't matter anymore. _Nothing_ really mattered anymore, now that Anna was…

She couldn't bring herself to even think it. If she didn't think about it, then it couldn't be true. But she always ended up thinking about it. How could she not? It was _her_ fault.

Elsa could feel the emotions building up inside her once again, but she didn't even try to hold it back. Not anymore. With a quiet sob, spikes of ice formed on the walls around her. Everything in her room was frozen solid. It had been since the morning she'd found out.

She remembered it more clearly than she would have liked to. She had been on her way to wake Anna up for breakfast and morning lessons. She normally wasn't the person to do that, but Anna's maid had been sick that morning and, truth be told, Elsa sometimes liked to be able to watch her sister while she slept, while she could be happy and carefree. _Safe_. She never could have expected to find what she had that morning.

She'd knocked on the door quietly, to see if, by any chance, Anna was already up and awake. When there was no answer, she'd pushed the door open and walked in, absentmindedly tugging her gloves to make sure that they were secure and couldn't slip off.

"Anna?" She had gone to her bedside silently, hands clasped together in front of her. She could tell that Anna was sprawled out haphazardly under the covers in typical Anna fashion. Her head was poking out from underneath the covers, and her hair was flung across her face. "Anna, sister, wake up," she'd tried again, making sure her hands were only touching the blankets before shaking her gently. Nothing.

She'd shook her head slightly with a soft smile. Anna always _did_ like her sleep. She'd sat on the edge of the bed, daring to raise a hand to gently brush some hair from Anna's eyes, but she'd paused as she reached. The hair that was in front of her face wasn't moving as she breathed in and out. That wasn't normal. Immediately alarmed, she'd placed a gentle hand on Anna's diaphragm, struggling to tell if she could feel it rising and falling as she breathed in and out, but she'd been unable to tell. Her hands had been shaking too much.

She'd tried to keep her calm as she told herself that she was only imagining it. "Anna?" she'd asked, voice shaking slightly. She'd looked to the bedside table to see if perhaps Anna had had some tea or medicine the night before to help her sleep, and it had just knocked her out cold.

Her heart had nearly stopped as she'd laid eyes on a dark vial laying on its side. Her hands shaking, she'd picked the bottle up and turned it over in her hands. She'd read the label and it had felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her. She'd recognised it, from one of her lessons a while back. She'd been learning about attempts on the crown, and different things that had been used in past assassination attempts. This one had stuck out to her, because the teacher had told her that this was available at almost any apothecary, so long as you had the money for it. It was a deadly poison, one that took a mere thirty seconds to fully act and kill the person drinking it.

Everything had seemed to move in slow-motion as the vial dropped from her hand, shattering on the ground as she'd turned to her sister. "Anna," she'd tried to be firm, but her voice wavered. She'd known she would get no answer. "Anna…" she'd choked out, forgetting her fear of hurting her sister as she threw the covers off of her and shook her harder. "Anna, wake up, please!" But she knew she wouldn't. She'd felt anger rise in her as hot tears spilled from her eyes. "Anna, this isn't funny anymore, stop playing!" But she'd known this was no game.

"Anna… Please…" She'd cupped her sister's face gently, noticing how pale she was. She'd been able to tell, even through her gloves, that Anna was far too cold. She'd been gone for a while now. "No…" she'd whispered, voice catching in her throat. "No… _No_!" She'd pulled her sister's still form into her lap and had cradled her, rocking her back and forth as she'd screamed at her. "You were so happy… You had so much to live for, _everything_ to live for, why? How could you ever do this, you little… _idiot_…" Elsa's angry screaming had dissolved into sobs as she'd buried her face in her sister's hair. "I'm so sorry, Anna, I'm so sorry…" she'd sobbed into her hair, kissing her head and pressing her forehead to Anna's. "I let you down, I should have been there for you, and I let you down, it's all my fault, I'm so sorry…" She'd cradled Anna closer as she sobbed harder. She'd remained there for a long time, rocking Anna and telling her everything she'd never gotten the chance to when they were younger, telling her how much she admired her and loved her.

She couldn't remember how long she'd been there when she noticed the little doll clutched in Anna's hand. She'd only cried harder when she recognised it as the doll that Anna had played with as a child, the blonde doll meant to be a substitute for the sister that was never there. She'd gently taken the doll from her grasp, and that had been when she noticed the note that lay folded in her palm. It had been all she could do to unfold the note and read it through her blurred, teary vision.

_I'm sorry I couldn't be a better sister to you, Elsa. I love you._

Elsa had let out a heartbroken scream. Anna had thought all of this time that she had been the problem, but it had always been Elsa. _This was her fault_. As she'd begun to sob again, the letter held in her gloved hand had begun to frost over. All of her emotions were about to break lose, she'd felt it, and her gloves wouldn't be able to hold it back this time.

Knowing that she'd never be able to forgive herself if she hurt Anna, even now, she'd fled, sobbing her apologies to Anna as she'd ran as hard as she could, pushing past the maids and others who had come when they'd heard her screaming. She'd barely managed to make it into her room before a flash of white had shot out of her, and everything around her froze solid as she'd fallen to her knees, sobbing. Everything else had been a blur as she'd yelled, screamed, and thrown whatever she could, alternating between being mad at Anna for leaving, and being mad at herself for causing it all to happen.

And now, five days later, everything was still as frozen as it had been that morning. She had only left the room once, for the service that had been had, but she proved unable to handle it, and had left halfway through, barely making it to her room before another beam shot from her, covering everything in a new layer of ice and snow.

Even now, Elsa couldn't understand why Anna had done it. She had seemed so happy, so carefree. She had mourned when mama and papa died, for a long time. Longer, she thought, than she herself had, but eventually she'd seemed to go back to her normal self. Even in her many days of loneliness and separation from her sister, she had still managed to be so bubbly and adventurous all of the time.

Elsa supposed she had never been more wrong in her life. Anna was gone now, dead and gone and never coming back, and _it was all her fault_. She buried her face in her hands as she began to weep again, snow beginning to fall around her. _All her fault._


	4. A Surprice Birthday Party

**Prompt: Throw a character a surprise birthday party!**

* * *

"Kristoff, come on! We only have a few hours until Elsa gets out of that meeting I had set up specifically to keep her busy all afternoon!"

"Alright, alright, Feistypants. Calm down. What's first in planning this surpr_ice_ party?" The blonde smirked down at the petite princess in front of him, who was in the process of bouncing up and down.

She smacked his arm. "Kristoff, if you crack a joke like that at the party, so help me, I will throw you off the North Mountain myself." She glared at him for a good ten seconds before remembering what he asked her. "Um… Well… I suppose we should start on the cake now. Chocolate, of course. Elsa loves chocolate almost as much as I do…" She began to pace, brow furrowing as she thought through everything that needed to be done for the party. She nodded to herself and headed towards the kitchens, pulling Kristoff along by the hand.

"Whoa!" Kristoff chuckled as the princess led him down a few corridors and flights of stairs, mumbling to herself all the while. When they finally reached their destination, Anna tried to pull away, but Kristoff squeezed her hand gently, waiting for her to look up at him. They shared a grin before he finally let her go, and then she was off. She bustled around, looking through cabinets and pulling out bowls and pans and ingredients, setting them on the counter in front of her. She began to hum as she set about mixing everything together.

Meanwhile, Kristoff leaned back against the counter behind Anna, watching her with a gentle smile as she worked. He remained silent and patient as she worked for thirty minutes, occasionally blowing her hair from her eyes in frustration as she struggled with measuring everything out.

Her voice snapped him back to reality. "Hey, tough guy, you sure you don't want to help?"

"No, no, no, Feistypants, baking the cake was your job. Mine was to make sure the ice sculptor got his ice and to make sure Sven and Olaf would be okay waiting for us in the dining hall. _Which_ I did," he confirmed as Anna looked at him skeptically.

"Alright, fine, I'll do it all by myself…" she sighed dramatically as she started to pour the mix into the pans.

Kristoff smirked and reached into the flour container, sprinkling some in his hand before blowing it in Anna's face, making her sneeze.

"Kris_toff_…." She whined playfully, quickly pushing the cake pans into the oven before reaching both hands into the flour with a smirk, pulling out two handfuls and holding them at the ready.

"Okay, Anna, I know that looks like a good idea, but come on, you don't want to go there. Besides, you don't want to be covered in flour for Elsa's party." Kristoff held his hands up in surrender as he backed away slowly.

"_I_ won't be. You, on the other hand, _will_." And with that, she flung the flour at him with a giggle before running to the door before he could retaliate. "I'm gonna go get dressed I'll be back in an hour to get the cake out you should go clean up too!" she ran her words together in one long sentence before shooting him a cheeky grin and running off.

Kristoff only shook his head and brushed as much flour off as he could. That was _so_ like Anna. But that was what he liked about her so much, her spontaneity. With a chuckle, he headed off to his guest room to go clean up.

* * *

Two hours later, the cake was iced and everything was set up in the dining hall. The snowflake ice sculpture had been put in place, and Elsa's favourite foods had been made and placed on the table, along with the cake. Anna had one of her nicer dresses on, and Kristoff had even dressed for the occasion, which meant his hat had come off.

Anna was pacing, wringing her hands nervously as she bit her lip. "What if she doesn't appreciate it? What if she hates it? We never celebrated her birthday as children, why would she want to start now?"

"Anna! Anna, Anna, Anna…" Kristoff took her by the shoulders and ducked his head slightly to look at her. "I think your childhood was a bit of a special circumstance…" He kissed her head gently. "I'm sure she'll love it."

"She's coming!" Olaf pulled back from where he had been peeking out of the door, waddling over to the table, where Anna, Kristoff, and Sven were waiting.

Anna took a deep breath and managed to calm down enough to fold her hands in front of her. She exhaled slowly as the door to the dining hall opened slowly.

"Surprise!" Anna, Kristoff, and Olaf grinned as Elsa jumped a bit, a hand over her chest. Anna immediately ran to her sister, taking her hands in her own.

"I'm so sorry I scared you, I just figured that maybe after so many years without-"

"Anna…"

"and since you're home now and everything's okay between us-"

"_Anna_…"

"that this would be the perfect opportunity, I'm sor-"

"_Anna!_" Elsa pulled her sister into a tight hug, effectively silencing her younger sister. She smiled as she pulled back, cupping the younger girl's cheek as her own eyes filled with tears. "Dear sister, I am very touched by your sentiment. There's no need to apologise." She kissed her forehead. "Thank you." The sisters shared another warm hug before Olaf spoke up in the background.

"I don't know about you guys, but I am _starved_, let's eat!"

The group laughed as Elsa caught sight of the cake. "Tell me there's chocolate underneath that icing."

"What else would it be?" Anna giggled. "Dibs on first piece!"

"No fair, it's _my_ birthday!"

The sisters laughed happily as they ran to the table, and Anna decided that throwing a surprise party for Elsa had definitely been a good idea.


	5. Arendelle Under Attack

**Prompt: No prompt, and definitely not one of my best stories.**

**Trigger Warning: There is character death in here, just a fair warning.**

* * *

All was silent in the bedroom the two young princesses of Arendelle were sharing for the night. Both girls slept silently, twelve year old Elsa in her bed, and four year old Anna in a palette on the floor. Normally, the girls were kept distanced from eachother, they had been since the incident when Anna was just a baby. But tonight was a special circumstance. There had been rumours around the kingdom of a possible attack from one of the neighboring kingdoms, a planned attempt to overthrow the rulers. With that in mind, the King and Queen of Arendelle had asked Anna and Elsa to share a room, just this once. They didn't tell them why, though Elsa asked, observant as she was, she could tell something was wrong, but they wanted both girls to be together, so it would be easier to move them if necessary.

And their planning had proved necessary. Just after midnight, cries had been heard outside the castle gates, and the King and Queen had been warned. They quickly and quietly made their way to Elsa's bedroom, so they could move the girls to a safer place.

"Anna, darling, wake up." The Queen knelt down next to Anna's palette, touching her shoulder gently.

Young Anna stirred and blinked sleepily up at her mother, yawning as she reached for her. "Mommy?" she asked tiredly.

"Hush, little one, I need you to stay quiet, can you do that for me?"

Anna nodded, confused and a little scared as she woke up more. She looked over to Elsa's bed, where her father was handing Elsa her gloves. The adults' eyes met, and they both stood up, bringing the girls with them as they quickly traveled down the hall.

"Father?" Elsa asked, trotting to keep up with him as he pulled her along. "Father, I'm not a child anymore, please, tell me what is wrong."

The King looked back at Elsa, his gaze softening slightly when he saw the worry in her big blue eyes. He glanced back at his wife, who nodded once and began to talk softly to Anna to occupy her, so she couldn't hear.

"The castle is under attack. A neighboring kingdom is trying to overthrow your mother and I. We're moving you and Anna to a safe place where you can stay hidden." His pace never slowed as he quietly explained things to Elsa, whose brow furrowed immediately.

"And what of you and mother? You'll be hiding with us, too, right?" She looked up at her father, who sighed.

"Your mother and I are going to do whatever it takes to keep you and Anna safe." They arrived to some stairs and headed down them.

Just as Elsa was about to speak up again, there was the sound of wood breaking, followed by the yells of men. The King and Queen shared a worried glance before looking down at the girls.

"Elsa, take Anna." The Queen placed Anna, who had begun to cry, into Elsa's arms, causing her to tense up. She didn't normally allow herself to touch Anna at all. That was too dangerous. "I need you both to stay as quiet as possible, and stay hidden under here." The Queen motioned to a small table that stood against a wall, a long tablecloth hiding the legs. She pulled the cloth up and ushered Elsa underneath it. She knelt down and kissed each of her daughter's foreheads. "No matter what you see, no matter what you hear, you keep your sister and yourself safe."

"But, Mother…" Elsa tried to protest. "I could help!" she whispered, putting on her best brave face as tears began to fill her eyes.

"Promise me you will stay under here, my little snowflake." The Queen cupped her daughter's cheek gently. "_Promise me_."

Elsa nodded quietly as she watched her mother disappear as the tablecloth fell back into place. She looked down at Anna in her arms, trying to soothe her quietly as the yells grew louder and louder, the sound of running feet following soon after.

Suddenly there was a silence. No. Elsa could hear words being said, but she couldn't make them out. She strained to listen over Anna's soft sniffling. She heard the sound of several swords being unsheathed and her eyes grew wide as she managed to hear her mother begging. She looked down at Anna in her arms as tears filled her own eyes.

"Anna, look at me, right now." She waited for Anna to look up at her with teary eyes. "You close your eyes. Right now, do you understand?" She waited until she saw her close her eyes before she pressed her hands over her sister's ears and squeezed her own eyes shut tight, doing her best to block out every sickening sound that she heard. Anna began to cry again, quiet little sobs escaping as Elsa kept her held close, doing her best to make sure that Anna had no idea what was truly happening. "It's okay, Anna, it's okay. It's gonna be okay." She knew Anna couldn't hear her, but it was the only thing she could think to do under the circumstances.

Elsa did everything she could to control her crying, doing her best not to sob, as the room grew quiet again, so quiet she could hear the wind blowing outside the window across the hall. It was then that Anna let out a stifled sob. Elsa looked up, eyes wide with fear , as she heard footsteps approaching the table. Without a second thought, she slid one glove off, held Anna close with her free arm, and threw her hand out. "Anna, stay still!" she warned as the tablecloth raised up, and she focused all of her power into the one hand. She wasn't sure how long she ended up staying like that, but after a while, the room had settled back into a loud silence. Anna sniffled and began to cry harder again as Elsa opened her own eyes, blinking back her tears as she looked over her shoulder. Taking a shaky breath, she moved to her knees, keeping Anna cradled against her as she crawled out from underneath the table.

She exhaled sharply as she looked at the room around her. Every single person had been frozen solid. Nothing moved, not a sound was made as Elsa let out a quiet sob. She began to walk towards the castle door. Surely someone out there would be able to help, right? As she walked, she did her best not to look at where their mother and father lay on the ground, or at the frozen pool of red around them. She kept Anna's face tucked in the crook of her neck as she finally made it to the door. She paused and took a deep breath, turning to face outside, when she heard Anna's quiet voice.

"Elsie…?" she whispered between sobs. "Where's mommy and daddy?"

Elsa took a deep breath and looked down at her baby sister. "It's just you and me now, Anna," she whispered shakily as tears came to her eyes again. "It's just you and me now."


	6. Sisters in the Kitchens

**Prompt: Elsa and Anna bake cookies or a cake or something.**

* * *

"Come on, Elsie! I want to bake cookies!"

"I'm coming, Anna, just a second!" Seven year old Elsa giggled as she finished putting her shoes on and ran out of her bedroom and into the hallway, where her four year old sister bounced eagerly on the balls of her feet. "Ready?"

Anna clapped and giggled as she ran ahead of her sister. "Come on, Elsie, race you!"

Elsa grinned and ran after her, quickly catching up to her, but staying a bit behind Anna, so she could win, as they made their way to the kitchens. As they arrived at their destination, Anna jumped through the doorway a triumphant smirk.

"Ha! I win, Elsie!" She did a little happy dance as Elsa entered behind her.

"You sure did, Anna, good job!" Elsa smiled and leaned over to kiss her little sister's cheek. "What kind of cookies do you want to make?"

"Chocolate chip!" Anna waddled over to a kitchen stool and carefully pulled herself up to perch on top of it, watching her sister move about the kitchen as she started taking out everything they'd need.

"Alright, Anna. One batch of chocolate chip cookies, coming right up. Do you want to pour the chocolate chips in when I'm ready?" Elsa grinned as she started to pour in the dry ingredients, laughing as her sister nodded eagerly.

Anna watched intently, her chin perched in her hands, as Elsa got the dough ready. "Can I put them in yet, Elsie?"

Elsa chuckled. "Not yet, silly. Almost."

Anna waited a whole thirty seconds. "What about now?"

"Just a few more minutes of mixing, Anna, okay? Then you can help, okay?"

Anna pouted, but nodded. "Yes, Elsa."

Elsa noticed Anna's slight change in mood, and quickly finished mixing. "Alright, Anna, it's time to add your chocolate chips in, you ready?"

Anna perked up immediately as she hopped off of her stool and tottered over to where Elsa stood with the bowl of chocolate chips. She took the bowl from her sister and let her pick her up so she could reach.

"Alright, Anna, pour in as many as you'd like!" Elsa watched with a soft smile as Anna poured in a substantially large amount of chocolate, waiting patiently for her to be done.

"Okay, Elsie, I'm done!"

Elsa nodded and set her back down on her feet. "Can you go get the pan for me, Anna?"

Anna nodded and ran over to the cabinet where she knew the baking trays were kept and opened the doors, grabbing the correct tray and taking it back to Elsa proudly.

"That's it, thank you, Anna!" Elsa smiled and took the tray from her sister and started scooping the dough onto it, doing her best to make perfect little circles of dough. When she was finished, she took it over to the kitchenhand, who was watching over them from the other side of the room, thanking her as she put the tray in the oven for her.

Anna ran over to her sister. "Elsie! Elsie, can we play with snow while we wait! Please, oh please, oh pretty please!" Anna gave her best little pout, which made Elsa giggle.

"Alright, alright. Just for you, Anna." She held a hand out, and a small snowball formed in her palm. "Catch!" She tossed it to Anna, who caught it with a giggle.

"_You_ catch!" she replied, tossing it back to Elsa. Their game continued for thirty minutes until they heard someone clear their throat. Anna turned and grinned as she saw the kitchenhand standing with a plate full of cookies. She ran to her and thanked her as she carefully took the plate and turned back to her sister.

"Be careful, Anna, they might be a little warm," she warned as Anna sat the plate on the counter and went to pick up one of the cookies.

Anna nodded and gingerly picked up the cookie and took a careful bite from it. She grinned happily as she took another bite. "Mmmmmmmmm you did really good, Elsie!" she mumbled, her mouth full as she took another bite.

Elsa giggled. "We're not supposed to talk with our mouths full, Anna." She picked up her own cookie and took a bite, quickly disregarding what she had just said as she spoke. "Mm, these are good!" She finished chewing and swallowed before grinning at her sister. "You put just the right amount of chocolate chips in, good job, Anna!"

The sisters shared a giggle and a smile as they set about eating their plate of cookies, resolving not to tell their parents that they were eating them before dinner.


	7. Separation Anxiety

**Prompt: How they separated Anna from Elsa.**

* * *

Anna didn't understand. She and Elsa had always been so close. Her earliest memory was sitting as she watched Elsa create a snowflake between her hands. She had conjured it up to occupy Anna, who had been upset and crying. But now everything was different. Everything had changed, and Anna wasn't exactly sure that she really knew why.

Yesterday had been normal. Well… from what she could remember of it. She remembered that yesterday morning, she and Elsa had been running around outside, playing tag and laughing together. And yesterday afternoon they had spent the majority of their time colouring and drawing and sharing secrets.

But then last night was mostly a blur. She remembered that the Northern Lights had woken her up, and, unable to go back to sleep, she had woken Elsa up and had asked her… something. She couldn't remember what. She couldn't remember anything after waking Elsa up.

She had tried to talk to Elsa this morning, but Elsa hadn't said a word, and had left rather quickly, a serious expression on her face. That had made Anna sad. She'd always been able to talk to Elsa and now it felt like Elsa didn't want to talk to her. Sometimes Elsa wasn't very talkative in the mornings. Perhaps she had just been tired. Yes, that must have been it. Maybe she should try again now.

With a nod to herself, Anna stood from where she had been sitting on her bedroom floor and went over to Elsa's bedroom, reaching up to knock on the door. "Elsie?" Silence. She knocked again. "Elsie?" She looked outside at the snow that was covering the ground. As an idea popped into her head, she turned back to the door. "Elsie. Do you wanna build a snowman?"

She waited. And waited. And waited. No answer came from the other side of the door and she pouted, knocking again before she heard a soft voice from down the hall.

"Anna, sweetheart, you need to leave your sister alone."

Anna looked up to see her mother standing at the corner, watching her with a sad smile. She ran over to her and ran into her waiting arms, holding onto her as she picked her up. "Why, mother?"

"Elsa started her princess lessons today, and she needs it to be quiet so she can learn and study."

"Can I start princess lessons?" Anna asked. If she was in princess lessons, too, she could be with Elsa!

"You're much too young, sweetheart. And Elsa needs them because she has to be queen one day. Perhaps when you're older, okay, darling?" The Queen kissed her daughter's head gently.

"Okay, mother." She nodded, but pouted as she looked back at Elsa's closed bedroom door. One way or another, she was going to talk to Elsa.

* * *

A week had passed. Anna hadn't been allowed anywhere near Elsa or her bedroom. The only time they ever saw one another was at dinner, and they were kept at complete opposite sides of the dining table. They were so far away, Anna couldn't even see Elsa's facial expressions.

Anna definitely didn't like this. She missed her sister. She missed playing with her. She missed telling her secrets. She'd sneak out and sit outside of Elsa's door sometimes, when she could, and play with her dolls and pretend that Elsa was playing with her. One time, she could have sworn that she had heard sniffles coming from inside, but when she had tried to talk to Elsa, the King had somehow managed to show up just at the wrong time, and had picked her up and gently scolded her about disturbing Elsa. He hadn't sounded angry, though, and when Anna had looked up at him, his expression looked saddened and pained. Anna didn't get it.

Every chance she got, when no one was watching, she'd go to Elsa's room and knock on the door, but she never got an answer, especially after the time she'd thought she'd heard Elsa crying. Every night without fail, after she had gotten changed into her nightgown, she would go to Elsa's door, press her hand against the dark wood, and tell Elsa good night and that she still loved her very much. Sometimes, if she listened close enough, she swore she could hear Elsa say it back. But her parents always seemed to come right then, and sweep her off to her own bedroom and tuck her in for the night.

Anna wasn't sure why they were keeping Elsa away from her. Had Elsa done something wrong? Had _she_ done something wrong? She wasn't sure. But she hoped that one day, in the not too far away future, she'd be able to play with Elsa one more time. Maybe they could build another snowman together. That would be nice. She missed her sister terribly. She wanted her best friend back.


	8. Olaf's Quest

**Prompt: Olaf wants a warm hug and he'll get one if it takes him all day!**

* * *

Olaf waddled around the castle of Arendelle. It was a pleasant morning, birds were singing outside and the weather was nice, but all of his friends were nowhere to be found. And this was potentially problematic, because Olaf was in the mood for at least two good warm hugs, and how could he get those if he didn't know where his friends were?

With a shrug and a little smile, Olaf started his search through the castle hallways, looking in every open doorway he walked past. "Hey, Anna! Kristoff! Where'd you guys go?" He received no answer in return. "Elsa? Sven?" His voice echoed throughout the halls. There appeared to be no one here, at least not anywhere near him. He continued his search, unphased.

He finally made his way outside and decided to head for the stables, hoping to find Sven or Kristoff, or, if he was lucky enough, both of them. "Kristooooooooff! Sveeeeeeeeen!" he sang out as he walked into the stables. He looked around. No sight of the mountain man. But who was that in the last stall? That had to be Sven, he was the only one with antlers. With a giggle, Olaf teetered over to the stall and waved at his friend.

"Hi, Sven!" He reached over to pet Sven, who looked up at him with a grin, his tongue lolling out of his mouth as he thumped his back leg on the ground. "It's nice to see you, too, buddy, how ya been?" The only answer he got was silence as Sven looked at him mischievously before, out of nowhere, he snapped at his carrot nose. He ran off proudly, not even realizing that he had completely missed Olaf's nose altogether. Olaf laughed and looked after him as he trotted off. "Sven, come back, what about warm hugs?" But the reindeer was long gone. Olaf frowned a bit, but then shrugged. There were other people he could ask. With a new grin on his face, he waddled down the path to the garden in search of one of his other friends.

After a while, he could hear the faint strumming of a lute. He perked up. The only person he knew that had ever played a lute was Kristoff. Maybe Kristoff would help him with his hug dilemma! "Kristoff!" He walked around the corner and found the mountain man sitting on a bench, tuning the instrument and strumming it occasionally. "Kristoff, I-"

"Olaf, hush, I need to focus on this." Kristoff didn't even look up from his lute as he messed with the strings some more, listening closely as he strummed them again.

"But, Kristoff-"

"Go pester someone else, Olaf. I'm busy."

Olaf sighed and frowned a bit. Typical, grumpy Kristoff. He still had some loosening up to do. But this wasn't going to put him off. There were other people he could find to hug. There were still…. Elsa and Anna! They would have time for him, right? He hoped so. They always seemed to have time for him.

Olaf grinned again. "Bye, Kristoff!" He waved and turned, back on his merry way once again. Now. If he were a queen or princess of Arendelle, where would he be? He traveled back into the castle, looking in doorways as he walked down another hall. "Princess Anna! Queen Elsa!" he called, continuing to waddle through the hall as he found himself going in the direction in which he knew the kitchens were. He could hear faint laughing and perked up. Maybe that was Anna and Elsa!

"Queen Elsa! Princess Anna?" he called out again as he eagerly made his way to the doorframe.

"Olaf?" came Anna's voice from inside.

"Anna!" Olaf giggled as he walked into the doorway and saw Elsa and Anna standing there, both grinning as he came into the room.

"Hi, Olaf!" Anna smiled and knelt down to get closer to his level. "How has your day been going?"

Olaf shrugged. "It's been okay, I guess. I've been walking around all day trying to find someone to share a warm hug with, you see. I found Sven, but he ran off thinking he had got my nose, but he didn't." Olaf pointed to the carrot nose in the middle of his face, for proof, making the girls giggle. "And I found Kristoff, but he was being a bit grumpy. And he was working on his lute, which was important, so I decided not to bother him."

Elsa smiled softly and knelt down next to her sister. "So you've not gotten your warm hug yet, then, is that it?"

Olaf nodded. "No hug yet."

Elsa smiled and caught her sister's eye, nodding towards Olaf. They both reached forward to envelope Olaf in a group hug, making the snowman giggle with delight.

"Is that better, Olaf?" Anna giggled, looking down at the snowman as she pulled back slightly.

"Oh, much better. You both give the nicest, warmest hugs ever! Thank you!"

Elsa smiled and leaned down to give him another hug. "Anything for our most favourite snowman!"

Olaf smiled and giggled happily. That counted as three hugs! And he had only wanted two! He had _definitely_ filled his warm hug quota for the day. And as Anna leaned down to give him yet another hug, he decided that warm hugs were most definitely his favourite things, especially from his good friends.


	9. Wrong

**Prompt: No prompt.**

**Trigger Warning: There are mentions of self-harm in this story, so please don't read if you are worried you might get triggered.**

* * *

Elsa slammed an open hand down on the balcony railing, and as her palm made contact with the ice, spikes of ice pushed through the walls of the ice palace around her. She screamed and yelled and cried as she allowed herself to get angry, letting her powers animate the frustration and self-hatred she was feeling inside.

She had done it again. She had hurt her sister again. After she had sworn she would never even let her powers show again. She hadn't physically hurt Anna of course, not this time. But she could tell that Anna was hurt emotionally. She could see it in her eyes, the way she had looked at her when she had revealed her powers during her coronation celebration. She hadn't been able to handle the look in Anna's eyes. She'd never meant to hurt Anna again.

With one final blast of icy magic, Elsa let herself slide to the floor, exhausted and worn out and angry and hurt. As she held her head in her hands, she thought back on the day that Anna had been born. She had only been three, but she could remember as clear as day the words that she had spoken to Anna as she slept in their mother's arms.

"_I'm gonna take good care of you. I'm not ever going to let anyone hurt you. I promise_."

The irony alone in that statement was enough to make Elsa weep bitterly. She had swore she wouldn't let anyone hurt Anna, and then she herself had, when they were playing as children. And that had spiraled into an entire childhood of hurting.

She knew it must have hurt Anna, being rejected every single time she'd tried to talk to Elsa, or had knocked on her door. It probably hurt as bad as it had hurt herself, to not be able to respond back or to open the door so they could play together.

Elsa sighed as she wiped the frozen tears from her cheeks. Why did everything have to go so wrong? Why did she have to be born this way? Why did she have to born with a power that could take life so easily, that could be so dangerous, even in the most innocent of situations? She supposed she was being punished for something, but for what? Was it because she was a bad girl? Was it because someone somewhere had known that she would grow up to be a bad person?

The only thing she knew for certain was that somewhere, something had gone horribly, terribly wrong. And there was no chance of things ever getting back to the way they were. There was no way to fix something when she didn't know what was broken. If she was the one that was broken, how was she supposed to fix that? She had tried before. She'd tried to fix herself, in her darkest moments, tried to cut the magic out of her in hopes of making things all better again. She had the scars to prove that that hadn't worked.

Nothing had ever worked. No amount of wishing or hoping or hurting had ever changed anything, and why would it now? She was destined to have everything go wrong, and that's the way that things would always be.

Elsa clenched her fists as she looked towards the door of her beautiful prison. How she longed to be able to go out and try to make things better, to fix her many wrongs. But she couldn't. For one thing, she'd commanded Marshmallow to never let her leave the ice palace, under any circumstances whatsoever. And, regardless, she doubted that she'd have any kind of power to fix everything she'd done. She'd never been able to apologise to Anna for what had happened when they were children. And now there were so many more wrongs, she had lost track of them, and it was so much easier to run away and try to forget about them than it was to try and fix them.

So she vowed to stay locked away in her ice palace, until all of the wrongs faded away into the past. Or, perhaps, if it came first, until she herself faded away into nothing but a memory of the queen that couldn't do anything right.


	10. Wedding Jitters

**Prompt: Do one where Anna and Kristoff get married please?**

* * *

Anna's stomach was full of butterflies as she smoothed the fabric of her skirt out. She was scared out of her mind. What had she been thinking when she said yes? What was wrong with her? She couldn't do this. She could _not_ do this.

"I can't do this," she voiced her thoughts to her sister, who was standing behind her, helping her with the corset strings on the back of her dress. "I can't do this, Elsie."

Elsa chuckled softly. "Yes, you can. You've been waiting for this moment for years now, don't even try to deny it." Anna chuckled half-heartedly as Elsa finished tightening the strings and tied them up neatly before turning her sister to face her, putting a finger under her chin to lift her face up so she had to meet her eyes. "It's normal to be nervous on the morning of your wedding. I imagine most women are, anyways." She shrugged a bit, but smiled and leaned forward to kiss her sister's forehead, keeping her sister's face held gently in her hands. "You're going to be just fine. I'll be right behind you, maid of honour, and whatnot," she reminded her soothingly. "And you know that Kristoff is going to be happy to be there with you, too."

Anna tried her best to smile, but her bottom lip wobbled as her eyes began to fill with tears. Elsa frowned and immediately pulled her into a hug. "Oh, Anna, sweetheart…" She let her sister bury her face in the crook of her neck as she cried. Elsa moved to sit down on the edge of the bed, gathering Anna into her arms as she whimpered. They stayed like that for a while as Anna sobbed quietly until her tears died down into quiet hiccups. "Come now, Anna, what's the matter?" Elsa looked down at her, brushing a stray curl from her sister's eyes.

"I-I'm just s-so… sc-scared and n-nervous and h-happy all at once and I think I'm gonna explode!" Anna wailed, burying her face back in the crook of Elsa's neck.

Elsa couldn't help but chuckle softly as she rubbed her sister's back. "You _will not_explode." She fell silent when she heard another whimpering sob from Anna. "Anna… My dear little sister, sit up, and let me explain things to you," she offered, but Anna didn't budge. "Anna, really…" She stayed where she was and Elsa sighed, moving to stroke Anna's hair comfortingly. "Alright, I'll tell you from here, then. I know you're feeling all of these emotions at once, and I know it's scary. It's scary because your entire life is changing and you aren't sure what's going to happen, or if this is going to really end well or not. It's normal to be afraid when your life changes so drastically. But you're going to be_married_," she reminded her, noting that Anna's quiet sobbing had at least been silenced. "Surely you're more happy and excited about that than scared and nervous, right?"

Anna nodded against Elsa's neck and, with a heavy sigh, sat up, moving to wipe her eyes on her arm, but stopping when Elsa shook her head and offered her her handkerchief. She blew her nose noisily before taking a deep breath and looking up at her sister. "Yes, of course I'm excited, it's just… It's all…"

"Overwhelming?" Elsa offered and Anna nodded. "I know it is. But it's going to be okay. The wedding ceremony is going to be beautiful, and Kristoff is going to be so happy to finally be your husband, and everything is going to go perfectly, I promise."

Anna nodded and, after a second, threw her arms around her sister again. "Will you walk me down the aisle?" she whispered out of nowhere.

Elsa paused, taken aback by the sudden question, but nodded almost instantaneously as she returned her hug. "Of course, Anna. Of course."

* * *

Kristoff stood at the altar, nervously alternating between keeping his hands behind his back, and folding them in front of him. He couldn't believe this was about to happen, after so much time waiting. He was beyond happy, and a little nervous as well. He had grown up alone in the mountains with trolls, what if he was no good at taking care of Anna? What if he did everything wrong? And what would he do if or when they had a baby? He wasn't sure he'd know how to handle that. Hopefully, Anna would help him along the way. She seemed to know more about things like that than he did.

Kristoff was torn from his thoughts as he heard the organ start to play the wedding march. With a deep breath, he turned to the entrance to the room, and the breath was nearly knocked out of him. Anna looked gorgeous. Absolutely breathtakingly gorgeous. Her simple white dress was fitted in the bodice area, but then fell in gentle pleats around her waist. Her hair was done up in a bun similar to the one she'd worn during Elsa's coronation, her small tiara nestled in amongst her strawberry blonde hair. She happened to look up and catch Kristoff's eye, and she blushed, making Kristoff, in turn, blush, as well, as his grin widened.

Anna averted her gaze just as she managed to stumble, but Elsa kept her steady, her arm looped through hers as they walked. Elsa caught Anna's eye, silently telling her it was okay as they walked together up the aisle. The train of Elsa's dress, which was not all that unlike the one she'd worn in her ice palace, was significantly shorter than Anna's. Anna didn't normally like her dresses to have trains, but Elsa had managed to convince her just this once to go out of her comfort zone. Anna had begrudgingly accepted, and Elsa was proud. She thought her sister had never looked more beautiful than she did right now.

Everyone looked on in silence as Elsa led her sister up to the altar, turning to her and hugging her as they reached the front. "You're going to be okay, I promise," she whispered before pulling back and stepping to the side, where she could take over her maid of honour duties.

With a small smile, Anna turned back around to face Kristoff, who was watching her with the most loving expression she had ever seen. She felt her cheeks go hot again, and knew she must be turning ten different shades of red. She ducked her head bashfully as they stood together in front of the priest.

Kristoff couldn't take his eyes off of her. She looked so beautiful, more precious than any jewel he could think of, and he was so glad that he could call her his own in just mere minutes. The sound of a clearing throat from behind Anna shook Kristoff out of his thoughts. He looked over to see Elsa motioning with her head, nodding towards the priest. Oops. Apparently, he was supposed to be saying something. With a sheepish grin, Kristoff looked back to the priest and asked him to repeat himself, please.

Anna giggled. Typical Kristoff. He never paid attention. But Anna had to admit, _she_ was having trouble paying attention, too. Kristoff was looking rather handsome today. And she'd be able to call him her husband soon! That was more exciting than scary, Elsa had been right about that. With a soft smile, she looked up at Kristoff as she repeated what the priest had asked her, too, her eyes never leaving Kristoff's as they exchanged rings.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. Mr. Bjorgman, you may kiss your bride."

Anna beamed as she looked up at Kristoff. It was practically official now, they just had to kiss in front of… an entire room full of dignitaries and her sister, and… maybe this was going to be harder than she thought.

But then Kristoff gently took her face in his hand, leaned down and kissed her, and everything seemed to melt away. The kiss was soft and sweet and loving and gentle, and the most perfect, innocent kiss she had ever experienced. She smiled as she pulled away, her cheeks flushing once again as the guests all began to applaud. She looked back at Elsa, who was smiling, tears in her eyes as she watched her little sister. When she noticed she had caught Anna's gaze, she grinned and mouthed, "I told you so" to her.

Anna couldn't help but laugh softly as she turned back to look at Kristoff. Her husband. Elsa was right. Starting a new chapter in her life was completely scary, terrifying, and altogether overwhelming, but she knew that she could do it, as long as she had her husband and her sister by her side the entire way.


	11. Fleeing

**Prompt: No prompt.**

* * *

She ran as hard as she could, oblivious to the sound of water turning to ice beneath her feet. She ignored the sound of her sister crying out for her, ignored the feel of her heart breaking. She only ran harder.

She had done it again. Her guard had dropped and she had ruined everything. Typical Elsa. She couldn't do anything right. Why even try anymore? The kingdom was far better off without her.

Which was why she had to leave_, needed_ to leave. Anna didn't deserve to have a monster for a sister. It was so much better this way.

She stumbled a bit as the ice underneath her transitioned into snow. She put her hands out, creating a small flurry of snow with enough force to help her regain her balance and stay upright. She looked around as she struggled to calm her breathing, tears threatening to spill with every second that passed as she fell to her knees. She pressed her palms flat against the snow, which hardened into ice under her touch.

She panted as she sat there, hunched over, her heavy breathing slowly turning to sobs as she looked down at her hands. Well… Better to show emotions out here where no one could be hurt. As she sobbed harder, the winds began to pick up, and before she knew it, a blizzard was well underway. But it didn't matter. The cold never bothered her, anyway.

And that was a good thing, because it looked like she'd be facing it a lot, now that she was out here alone. She had nowhere to run to, nowhere to hide herself away where she couldn't hurt anyone again. She was alone. Which was something she was used to, but not really something she preferred. But she could deal with it. She always had.

As she slowly regained her composure, the blizzard around her died down and a loud silence surrounded her. She stood up quietly and with a wave of her hand, brushed all of the snow away that had covered her hair and clothing. She couldn't just stay here. She supposed she had to do _something_. What good would running away do if she didn't have some kind of plan?

She looked around at the frozen landscape around her as she began to traverse up the North Mountain. The further away she got from Arendelle, and from Anna, the better. She couldn't hurt anyone if they couldn't get up here to her.

That was it. She had to build some sort of fortress, high up here on the North Mountain, almost impossible to reach, especially if one didn't have the right tools. She'd make sure that no one would be able to come into contact with her again, for their sake. She couldn't afford to hurt anyone ever again. She'd never meant to in the first place.

Elsa sighed as she looked around her. Perhaps she could not rule Arendelle, but up here where no one could be hurt, she could rule however she wanted to, she could make whatever she wanted to, really. That was the only thought that could give her any kind of respite from her emotions right now. She looked up as she took her remaining glove off, tossing it into the wind without another care.

A kingdom of isolation, and things were shaping up to look like she would be the queen.

And didn't a queen deserve her own palace?


	12. Tea Time

**Prompt: No prompt.**

* * *

Elsa was _not_ happy. Well, she wasn't pleased, rather. It was eighty degrees outside. And she was expected to go outside in it? This could not possibly end well, for all parties involved. But, she had promised Anna that they'd have tea outside on the terrace. She wasn't one to make promises to Anna, particularly when it involved the two of them spending time together. But she had been stressed out, with her coronation a mere fortnight away, and she figured perhaps just this once, she could let Anna in. Maybe she could manage to find a way to chill her seat so she wouldn't be so hot.

A hesitant knock on the door startled her from her thoughts, and she stood to open it, a faint, sad smile gracing her lips as she saw Anna there, waiting with a big grin on her face.

"Elsie!" Anna grinned and dipped into an awkward curtsy.

"Anna, you know you don't have to do that," she stepped aside to allow Anna entrance into her chambers. "I take it you're ready for our afternoon tea, then."

Anna grinned and nodded enthusiastically. "I've been looking forward to it since the moment that I woke up!" She frowned a bit. "We never get to play together like we used to when we were children…"

Elsa smiled grimly. Anna was right. Ever since the incident, Elsa had distanced herself from her sister, busying herself with lessons and studying and preparing to be queen. And now, she was struggling to find enough free time to get a few hours of sleep.

"I know… Nothing's been the same since-" She caught herself before she could say it. Anna still didn't remember that night, and Elsa did not want to be the one to start that storm of emotions. Unsure how to cover up her sudden pause, she settled in a silence, going over to her desk and straightening some papers as Anna plopped down on her bed. This was why she hated her gift. It had ruined every chance she'd ever had as a normal girl. Her childhood had been filled with nothing but pain and sorrow, ever since she'd hurt Anna. She hated it. Absolutely hated it.

Eventually, she stopped fiddling with the papers and straightened, gathering her skirts and moving back towards the door. "Shall we?" She waited for Anna to jump up and exit the room before following after her quietly. She watched as Anna ran ahead, always aware of the differences between the two of them.

Anna was always so eager, and hyper. Her hands swung freely as she half-walked, half-skipped down the hall. Elsa looked down at her own hands, which were clasped demurely in front of her, the ever-present gloves a soft shade of turquoise to match her gown. She could never be as carefree as Anna. She couldn't _afford_ to be.

"…don't you think, Elsie?"

Elsa shook her head slightly to clear her mind as she came back to the current situation. She looked up to see that Anna had paused and had trailed back to walk next to Elsa. "Pardon?"

Anna only giggled slightly, not put off at all by her sister's apparent lack of attention. "I said, 'it's a rather nice, warm day out, don't you think, Elsie?"

Elsa gave a curt nod. "Indeed." Better to let Anna enjoy the rare company without having her think this was more of a burden to Elsa than it already was. Well, burden was a harsh word. She was only worried that something would go wrong and she'd hurt her sister, like she always seemed to do in every nightmare she'd ever had.

After a few more moments of walking in silence, they arrived at the terrace. As they stepped outside, Elsa was immediately hit with the stifling heat. This was going to be harder than she thought. While Anna was busy ooh-ing over the assortment of finger foods on the table, Elsa discreetly slid a glove off, spreading her fingers slightly, which allowed a sense of cooling to come over her, before placing her hand on the back of her chair, cooling it off as well before she sat, sliding her glove back on just as Anna looked up to face her.

"Everything looks amazing, Elsa." She smiled as she sat down before looking back up at her sister shyly. "Thank you… For agreeing to have tea with me. I… I know you have better things to do than to waste time with me."

That hit Elsa hard. She may avoid her sister, and push her away the majority of the time, but she couldn't bear to have her sister thinking that she was a burden to her. She needed to put a stop to that immediately.

"Anna…" She paused. How was she to explain why she did what she did without giving away her secret? "Anna, you are not a burden to me. Time with you is not time wasted. I promise." She poured herself a cup of tea as Anna looked down at her hands in her lap. "Anna, dear sister. You mean more to me than you will ever know. I know I am not always there when I should be, and there is a reason for that, and in good time, you will understand."

Anna looked up at her sister, and Elsa could see the tears pooled in her eyes. "You mean… You don't hate me?"

And there was something, perhaps the combination of the shocked tone of her voice, the sadness in her eyes, and the single tear trailing down her cheek that broke Elsa. In a rare show of sisterly affection, she stood from her chair and moved around the table, kneeling in front of Anna's chair and placing a gloved hand on her shoulder. "Anna, I _have_ never and_will _never hate you. I love you so much more than you know, and that's exactly why I do what I do."

Before Elsa had time to react, Anna had thrown herself into her sister's arms and was weeping quietly into her shoulder. Elsa, for once, didn't tense up, but simply held her sister close. This wasn't exactly the safest thing for Anna, Elsa knew that all too well, but she figured just this once, she could let her sister in and show the compassion she had longed to show for so long. Didn't she deserve that after all?

After a short while, Anna pulled back and wiped her tears away as she gave Elsa another shy smile. "I'm sorry. I… I just…"

"It's alright, Anna. I understand." In another rare show of sisterly affection, she put a gloved hand under her sister's chin, bringing her up to face her. "Always remember that I love and care for you so much. And that's the only reason I've ever done everything that I have to you."

Anna nodded quietly. "And… one day… I'll understand?"

Elsa nodded. "One day, you will understand the sacrifices I've had to make and the hurt I've gone through, too. One day."

Anna nodded and, hesitantly, leaned forward to hug her sister again. Elsa allowed herself a small smile as she held her sister close.

Perhaps letting Anna in wasn't always _so_ bad after all.


	13. Anna at the Ice Palace

**Prompt: No prompt.**

* * *

"Elsa?" The young princess of Arendelle stared up at the icy fortress in front of her. "Elsa, please, he's coming for you!" She pounded on the door with a mittened hand. "Elsa!"

Little did she know that the Snow Queen was just on the other side of the door, her back pressed against it as she contemplated letting her sister in. After a few moments of deliberation, she found her voice.

"Go away!"

"Elsa!"

"Leave me be!"

"Elsa, the Duke, he… he's coming to destroy you! Please-"

"Let him! Let him end this hurt and pain and confusion! The world should be rid of a monster like me!"

"Elsa, that's not true! Please, let me in!"

"Why should I? So you can coddle me and comfort me and tell me everything will be alright? We both know that's not the case." She turned, pressing both palms against the door as she breathed heavily, thickening the ice more in the process.

"Elsa, please!"

"No!" Elsa panted from exertion as she removed her hands from the ice. On one hand, she was defiant. She didn't want help. She couldn't accept the help. Especially not from her sister, who was still so willing after all the years of pushing her away that Elsa had done. And yet, on the other hand, she was so very tired of running and hiding. "No…" she said, voice significantly quieter.

As she panted more, the barricade of ice melted from in front of her, allowing Anna entrance into the ice palace. In a matter of seconds, Anna had her arms around Elsa, who tensed in shock at her actions, unused to any kind of positive physical contact.

"It's okay, Elsa. It's okay…" Anna murmured softly, keeping her sister in a tight hug. "It's okay, I promise… I'm here now."

There was something about the tone of Anna's voice, so caring and gentle to someone so undeserving, and it completely broke Elsa as she fell to her knees, breaking into sobs. Anna slid to the floor with her, keeping her held tight as she stroked her hair gently.

"It's okay, Elsa… You've been strong for so long now. Let me help you carry your burden," Anna whispered, continuing to smooth her hand over Elsa's hair.

Elsa sobbed a little harder. "You can't… you can never carry my burden, Anna. I wouldn't wish it upon my worst enemy." She pulled away as forcefully as she could. "You shouldn't be touching me. I could hurt you."

"Elsa…" Anna frowned and reached to put a hand on Elsa's shoulder, but she jerked further back. She stayed silent as she watched Elsa cry quietly. It was actually a rather scary thing, to see Elsa cry. Elsa had never cried, at least, not that Anna had ever seen. And to see someone how was usually so strong and stoic now hurting and crying was enough to make Anna wish she could have Elsa's powers so she didn't have to deal with them anymore.

"Please…" Elsa sobbed quietly, though her sobs were becoming more controlled. "Please leave… There's nothing for you here."

"You're here…" Anna pointed out gently. "Why would I want to leave you here alone?"

"Because I'm a monster!" Elsa roared, fully turning from Anna as she hunched over, wrapping her arms around herself. There was a thick silence as Anna let Elsa calm down. "Because you shouldn't have a monster for a sister," Elsa replied in a much calmer voice. "And you deserve some shred of normalcy in your life."

"If living a normal life means living without you, I don't want it. You're my sister, and I love you, and I will never leave you." Anna scooted closer to where Elsa was, gently placing a hand on her shoulder, surprised when Elsa didn't shy away or tense up. "Please… Let me in…"

Elsa's head fell, and there was another deafening silence until Anna heard a sniffle come from Elsa. In a matter of seconds, Elsa had turned and thrown her arms around her sister, who, though shocked, immediately returned the hug, holding her tight.

"I'm so sorry, Anna… I'm so sorry…" Elsa sobbed, and Anna's heart broke once again, to know that Elsa had felt guilty for who knew how long. "I'm so, so sorry…" She dissolved into heart-wrenching sobs as Anna kept her close, rocking her as best she could.

"I know, Elsa… I know."


	14. Argument

**Prompt: Post movie, have Elsa and Anna get in an argument, and Elsa sprays Anna with a stream of snow. Anna says something like, "Hey, no fair, no snow powers." Then they start giggling.**

* * *

"Do I really have to try this on?" Anna whined, looking down at the gown that was currently adorning her body, not exactly perfectly altered to the princess, but Elsa was working on that. "I have plenty of other dresses to wear for the dinner tomorrow."

Elsa looked up from her place kneeling next to Anna, keeping a hand where she was holding the dress, a pin poking from the corner of her mouth as she sighed. "I know you do, Anna, but tomorrow's a special dinner. You know that. It's the-"

"The anniversary of mama and papa's death," Anna replied quietly. "I know."

Elsa fell silent as she finished working on pinning the dress. When she was done, she stood, motioning for Anna to remove the dress and taking it from her. She sat down on the window seat, needle in hand, as she began to swiftly hem Anna's dress. Sewing was something she'd had to learn in her lessons when she was younger, and it had ended up being a strongpoint for her, she'd loved to make things. For as long as she could remember, she'd been making her own clothes, all long-sleeved and showing little to no skin.

Of course, now that she was back in Arendelle, and the curse had been lifted, and she had better control over her powers, things were different. She allowed the royal dressmakers to make clothes for her. But she still liked to exercise her skills every once in a while, and she'd had the perfect opportunity when Anna's new dress had arrived and needed some slight alterations, having been made a bit too long. It also gave Elsa a chance to spend some time with her sister, something she was trying to do more of after thirteen years of pushing her away.

As Elsa worked, Anna remained silent, arms crossed self-consciously over herself as she stood in her shift and other undergarments, waiting for Elsa to finish. Eventually, she spoke up. "Elsa, really, you don't need to do this. It's going to take too much time and I've got so many others, really…" She reached to try and pull the dress away from Elsa.

"Anna, it's fine, I swear." Without so much as a glance up, Elsa pulled the dress out of her reach before she could snatch it. "I'm almost done, anyways."

"Ugh, you're so infuriating, do you know that, Elsa?" Anna sighed, frustrated as she tried to reach for the dress again, letting out another frustrated sound when Elsa only pulled it away again. "Elsa, I am eighteen years old, I have at least twenty other dresses that I could wear, will you just give… me… the… dress!" Each word was punctuated with another attempt at grabbing the dress, and each attempt was met with Elsa pulling the dress away, a smirk appearing and growing with every pull.

Anna all but shrieked in frustration and anger at her sister. "Elsa! Will you just… _stop it_! Just stop. I can take care of myself! I _had_ to for years, because you weren't there, and neither were mama and papa. And I thought that once they died, maybe things would change, but they never did."

Elsa sighed. This was always a touchy topic for the both of them, and Anna knew it as well as she did. The subject of their childhood was still an elephant in the room, and it had remained unaddressed ever since Elsa had come back. "Anna, don't even go there right now. We're talking about a dress for a dinner, not about our childhood. That's in the past, let it go," she tried to talk reasonably, but Anna would have none of it.

"No, I'm going there. Right here, right now. You were never there. You were my sister, and you were _never_ there for me. I needed you so much, and you never even acknowledged me. I had to grow up taking care of myself, because no one else did!"

Elsa sighed deeply and sat the dress and needle down, closing her eyes as she took a deep breath. "Anna, don't even speak about growing up taking care of yourself. You have no idea wha-"

"Oh, yes, I do." Anna had begun to pace angrily in front of Elsa, her hands balled into fists. "I have a very good idea what's it like to be ignored, to not be talked to, to not have anyone there for me."

"You think _you_ know what it means to not have anyone there for you?" Elsa spat angrily, finally standing up and facing her sister, who had stopped immediately when Elsa had stood. "You know _nothing_ about being alone, you know _nothing_ about not being talked to. You don't know anything at all."

"I know I _tried_ to talk to you!" Anna crossed over so that she was standing directly in front of Elsa, an angry finger pointed at her. "I would go to your door _every single day_ and knock, and _beg_ you to come out, and ask you silly questions, like if you wanted to build a snowman, or if you wanted to play dress-up with me, and you _never_ even graced me with an _answer_. You kept to yourself because you were nothing but a… a…"

"Anna…" Elsa warned, knowing where this was going and not liking it at all.

"…spoiled…"

"Anna!" she warned again, clenching her own hands into fists as she felt them begin to tingle.

"…_selfish_…"

"_Enough!_" Elsa threw her hand out in front of her, and a flurry of snow flew from her fingertips, spraying Anna completely from head to waist. Elsa froze, worried that she had just done something that would make her sister even more angry, or worse, that had hurt her again.

And as much as Anna wanted to continue to yell at Elsa and be mad at her, there was something about the combination of Elsa's wide eyes, the look of shock on her face, and the cold, tickly feeling of the snow on her own face that made Anna laugh. Hard. She doubled over as she giggled, one hand on Elsa's shoulder for support.

Elsa blinked once, surprised and confused. Very confused. But as Anna continued to laugh, Elsa couldn't help but crack a grin, laughing as she put one hand on Anna's elbow to support her and keep her upright.

Anna didn't know how long they stood there laughing, but at some point, they must have ended up laughing hard enough that both girls ended up sprawled out on the floor, and Anna somehow ended up with her head on Elsa's stomach as they giggled together.

Once they had both calmed down, Elsa looked down at her sister, one hand playing with her hair as Anna grinned and looked up at her. "Why were we arguing?"

"Because we're silly and can't let the past go," Elsa replied softly.

"I'm sorry," Anna murmured, looking up at her sister apologetically.

"I'm sorry, too, Anna. For everything." Elsa knew that everything that Anna had said were just empty words and that she hadn't meant them. They'd had many arguments like that before.

The sisters shared a smile and Anna moved to sit up, Elsa following suit.

"So… can we agree to let bygones be bygones, and focus on the present from here on out?" Elsa suggested.

"Agreed." Anna held out her pinky expectantly.

Elsa smiled and linked her pinky with her sisters. The act was so childish, but it still meant so much.

"Now, let's see if this dress is the right length now, hm?" Elsa stood up and pulled Anna to her feet.

Anna groaned dramatically, yet playfully, but straightened up immediately when Elsa held her hand up with a smirk. She scurried over to where the dress was and slipped it on without so much as another peep as Elsa chuckled.

Yes, Elsa would have to remember that the next time they got into a petty argument.


	15. Just Like My Sister

**Prompt: How about Little Anna asking about gloves for herself?**

* * *

The entire family, for once, was seated at the dinner table, eating dinner together for Anna's sixth birthday. The only sound for the majority of the meal was the sound of silverware clinking on plates as they ate in silence. It wasn't until dessert had been served, chocolate cake, Anna's favourite, that anyone spoke.

"Anna, darling, what would you like for your birthday this year?" The queen of Arendelle looked over at her youngest daughter, who was eating her cake happily, a smudge of icing on her cheek due to not paying attention and eating too fast. She chuckled and took a napkin and wiped her cheek off. "Slow down, sweetheart…"

Anna nodded and swallowed the piece of cake that she had been chewing. "What do I want for my birthday? Hm… What do I want for my birthday… Whaaaaaaat do I waaaaaaant for my birthdaaaaaaaaay…" The King and Queen of Arendelle watched her with gentle smiles as her brow furrowed and she thought hard.

From the far end of the table, Elsa sat by herself, watching silently as her sister made faces while thinking. She wished she could be over there, closer to her family. But she knew her parents wanted her to sit over here so everyone could be safer. Elsa didn't want to hurt anyone anymore. Not after what she'd done to her sister. She'd never meant to hurt her.

But sometimes, when she had to sit at the dinner table for special family dinners, her heart would ache so much as she watched her sister and parents laugh and talk and have a nice time. It was very rare that they seemed to remember that Elsa was there, as well, or at least include her in whatever conversation they were having at the time. It hurt more than Elsa ever let show. But she kept all of her feelings concealed, and tried not to feel at all. That made things easier.

Elsa shook her head slightly as she came back to the present, looking down at her piece of cake and poking at it absentmindedly with her fork, glancing back up at Anna, who had just gasped loudly.

"I KNOW!" Anna announced. "I want gloves like Elsie's!"

The entire room went silent, and Elsa's fork clattered as it fell from her hand and she looked up at Anna, her eyes wide. She was shocked. Everyone was. No one had expected an answer like that.

"Are you…sure about that, darling? Surely there must be something else you'd like to have? A new doll, a pretty new dress?" The Queen glanced up at the King, who remained silent and unmoving.

But Anna only shook her head. "No, mother! I want gloves so I can be just like my sister! Just like Elsie!"

The expression on Anna's face made Elsa's heart break. She looked so excited at the prospect of being more like her sister, and Elsa knew she should feel some sort of pride, but she could only feel hurt. Because she knew the truth. And Anna could never know the truth behind why Elsa wore the very gloves she liked so much. They were a protective barrier, the only barrier between herself and everyone else. Anna didn't need them, and she definitely shouldn't want them.

"Sweetheart, you don't need gloves," the King tried to convince her otherwise as he stood and moved to kneel next to Anna. "You can pick anything else you'd like, whatever it is you want."

But Anna was determined, and she shook her head. "No! I want gloves like Elsa's. Why can't I have those?"

"Well… Sweetheart, you see… " the Queen started, but she was cut off by Elsa suddenly speaking up.

"Because Anna," Elsa said coldly. She looked up at her sister, hoping that Anna wouldn't be able to see the hurt in her eyes or hear the pain in her voice as she said her next words. "You're not special enough to have gloves like me." She watched, heart breaking, as Anna's smile fell and she looked down, a quiet sniffle escaping. Elsa knew exactly what to say to push Anna away. She'd been doing it for most of a year now. That didn't make it hurt any less. "E-excuse me." Elsa sat her napkin over her plate and stood, running from the table and out into the hall. When she was certain she was out of hearing range, she slid to the floor, burying her face in her hands as she tried her hardest not to cry.

She didn't know how long she sat there, telling herself to keep it together and conceal it, before she heard footsteps approaching. She kept her head down as she felt her mother's gentle hand on her shoulder.

"I needed to push her away more…" she whispered tearfully after a while, finally looking up at her mother, tears still threatening to spill from her light blue eyes. "She was thinking too highly of me, if she wants to be like me. I had to push her away. For her sake. To make it easier," her voice broke as she spoke. "I have to keep her safe…" And with that, the tears finally spilled over, and she could feel frost forming in her gloves as she began to cry. "It hurts. It hurts so much…" she sobbed into the very gloves she hated so much.

"I know, sweetheart." The Queen frowned sympathetically and patted her shoulder gently. "I know."


	16. Northern Lights and Superstitious Nights

**Prompt: Kristoff and Anna discuss superstitions.**

* * *

The young couple walked hand in hand as they exited the castle, heading to a secret spot that only the two of them knew of. It wasn't that far of a walk, and it was the perfect place for viewing the Northern Lights in solitude, without having to worry about anyone interrupting them. As they settled down on a blanket they had brought, they both looked up with awed smiles as the colours danced across the night sky.

"They'll never cease to be beautiful to me…" Anna whispered as she leaned against Kristoff, who wrapped an arm around her as they continued to watch the night sky. "I remember I used to be woke up by them all the time, when I was a little girl. My argument was always that if the sky was awake, then I should be awake, too." She chuckled fondly as she relived childhood memories.

"I've been watching them for as long as I can remember. Even as a boy, when I was out with the older ice harvesters, they would always just be appearing when we headed down the mountains and back to Arendelle." He looked down at Anna. "So you were feisty, even as a kid, huh? Why does that not surprise me?"

Anna's only response was a light smack to his arm as she continued to watch the sky in silent awe. The moment, however, was interrupted as her face twisted in slight pain, and she brought a hand to her stomach, rubbing gently.

Kristoff noticed, and looked down at her, watching her with concern. "Everything okay?"

Anna nodded as she looked up at him, a soft smile on her face. "She's just kicking a little hard tonight." She grinned as she looked down at her swollen stomach, rubbing her hand in gentle, slow circles.

"You mean he?" Kristoff smirked smugly, shifting to avoid another whack from Anna.

"She's a she. The castle midwives all said so." Anna replied, making a face at Kristoff, who only smirked more. "You know what they say about carrying high. That means the baby's gonna be a girl!"

"That's just a silly superstition, Anna. An old wives' tale. Do you really believe that kind of stuff?" He raised an eyebrow as Anna shrugged.

"I don't know… Maybe I do. But even the other test, the one with the ring on a chain and hanging it over the stomach… The ring swung back and forth, that means it's a girl, too!" Anna continued, looking down at her stomach with a grin. "Tell him, little baby, you're a girl, right?" Anna winced as the baby responded with another hard kick.

"Looks like he's gonna be feisty, just like his mother," Kristoff laughed as he placed a hand over one of Anna's.

"For the last time, Kristoff Bjorgman, this baby is going to be a girl, and you know it, so… there!" Anna stuck her tongue at her husband.

"Well, regardless of what gender this little baby ends up being," Kristoff began, his tone more serious now. "I promise you, I will _always_ love and be there for both of you. No matter what."

Anna smiled and watched as he leaned over and pressed his ear against her stomach, which made her laugh. She watched as he made faces like he was listening in on a conversation. "Uh-huh. Mm-hmm. Is that so. Alright, I'll tell her." Kristoff looked up at her with a smirk. "Baby says to drop the superstitions, and just kiss Daddy already."

Anna blushed deeply and looked back up at the sky. "Baby didn't say that."

"No, but it _is_ something you should do." He watched her as she looked up at the sky, leaning over to brush some hair from her cheek and pressing a soft kiss there.

Anna finally allowed her gaze to slide from the green and purple lines across the sky to meet his gaze. With a soft chuckle, she leaned forward and pressed a soft, sweet kiss to his lips. When she pulled back, she moved to rest her head on his shoulder, and they both went back to looking up at the sky. "I love you," she murmured softly.

"And I love you, Anna," Kristoff replied, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"But I'm not superstitious."

"You are _so_ superstitious, Anna."

"Am not!"

"Are so!"


	17. Nightmares

**Prompt: No prompt.**

* * *

Anna sat on her bed, tugging on a loose thread in the bedspread as she held back a was tired. Something had woke her up. She wasn't sure what, but now she couldn't go back to sleep. She was a little nervous. Tomorrow was her sister's coronation, and that meant she would be even more distant than she already was, and Anna wasn't ready for that. So she had decided if she didn't go back to sleep, morning would never come, and that meant things could stay the way they were, which… weren't very good, to be honest, but they would only get worse after the coronation.

Anna looked up at her bedroom door with a heavy sigh. She missed her sister so much. It had been years since the last time they'd had any positive kind of interaction. Not that Anna didn't try, but Elsa always seemed so far away, like her mind was on other things. That, or she just gave Anna the cold shoulder and very briskly reminded her that she had studies to worry about, and so did Anna. It wasn't fair. Anna deserved a friend, didn't she? She'd had no one to speak to, since their parents had passed away.

She sighed and flopped belly-down onto her bed. She certainly wouldn't have anyone to talk to tonight. Even if she and her sister were on more talkative terms, Elsa had retired early this evening, no doubt wanting some peace and quiet to herself before things got crazy the next day. That was just the sort of thing Elsa would do. Anna figured that, if she could, Elsa would stay in her room and never come out, and do all of her queenly duties from there.

But every morning, she would hear the door down the hall open, and would hear the footsteps pass by her door. Most mornings, the footsteps would stop, or at the very least, hesitate, in front of her own bedroom door. A few mornings, when sleep had still clogged her mind, Anna could swear that Elsa had whispered a quiet "good morning" to her, but when she'd excitedly tumble out of bed to greet her, thinking maybe things would be different _now_, Elsa was always long gone, and Anna was left feeling a little emptier inside than she had before.

Anna had just about decided to try and go back to sleep when her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of someone crying out. Her ears perked up, and she looked back towards her bedroom door, wondering if perhaps that was what had woke her up in the first place. That was… odd. She listened in silence, wondering what it was that had made the sound, but just when she'd decided it was her mind playing tricks, she heard another cry, louder this time. Curiosity piqued, she stood from her bed, adjusting her nightclothes as she tiptoed towards the door. With a deep breath, she opened the door and stepped out into the hallway, looking down both ways, trying to gauge where the cries were coming from.

From here, she could also hear some kind of soft sobbing. With a start, she realised that the sounds were coming from Elsa's room, and she sprinted down the hallway to the doors that had come to be the bane of her existence. She thought about knocking, but worry for her sister overpowered her want to be polite, so she tried the door handle, shocked when she found it unlocked. She opened the door and slid inside, closing the door behind her.

"Elsa?" she asked softly, squinting in the darkness as she tried to see Elsa's silhouette. She finally spotted her on the bed, distressed and tossing and turning as she cried out again between sobs. "Elsa…" Anna quickly walked to the side of her bed and looked down at Elsa, unsure what to do. She realised, a bit late, that Elsa was still asleep, and came to the conclusion that she must be having a nightmare. She hesitated slightly before moving to sit down on the bed, sliding under the covers and snuggling up against Elsa. Elsa would never allow this if she were awake, and she'd probably be mad when she woke up, but Anna didn't care. Not right now.

"Sh…" Anna murmured soothingly, wrapping her arms around Elsa, trying to calm her down. "Sh… It's okay, Elsa… I'm here…" she brushed Elsa's sweat-soaked bangs from her forehead as she tossed and sobbed more. "Sh… You're gonna be okay now, it's okay…"

Elsa sobbed more. "No… No…" Her voice came out in a heart-wrenching, broken whisper, and Anna held her tighter.

"You're alright, it's okay…" Anna told her gently.

"I'm s-sorry… I'm so sorry, Anna, please, I'm so sorry… I never meant to hurt you…" Elsa's words tore at Anna's heart.

So she was having a nightmare about _her_. Anna wasn't sure what to think about it. She didn't realize she was on her sister's mind at _all_, let alone enough to have a nightmare about her. Perhaps Elsa _did_ care, far more than she ever let on, at least.

"Sh… It's okay… I forgive you, Elsie…" Anna murmured softly, using her old nickname for her sister as she leaned up to press a soft kiss to her forehead, remembering times from her childhood when she had been upset, and her mother had done the very same thing to her. Perhaps it would work for Elsa, too. "It's okay… I forgive you…" she reiterated.

Something in that action, or those words, seemed to calm Elsa down, and her sobs grew significantly quieter, and she slumped against Anna.

"That's it… You're okay…" Anna murmured, wrapping her arms tighter around her sister and holding her close. "Everything's gonna be okay now…"

After a few moments, Elsa's sobbing had ceased and she stirred a bit, her eyes opening ever so slightly as she looked up at her sister.

"A-Anna?" she whispered tiredly.

Anna looked up at her. Elsa's eyes were open, yes, but Anna could tell that she was more in a state of sleep than awake, so, for fear of her reaction, she decided she wouldn't say anything about being in her sister's bed unless Elsa asked her.

"Sh… Go back to sleep, Elsie… It's late." Anna murmured soothingly. That was a lot safer than bringing up the topic of the nightmare, which could make Elsa wake up more, and who knew what she would say or do about Anna being near her. She seemed to hate Anna being near her, or trying to be close to her.

But, luckily, Elsa only nodded and laid her head back down on her sister's shoulder, closing her eyes again. Anna brought the blanket up around them as Elsa drifted off to sleep again, going over everything in her mind again. It was scary, to think that Elsa had been so affected by a nightmare. She was normally so strong and seemed so unaffected by things around her. She was twenty-one years old, about to be queen. Anna never really considered the fact that even future queens could have nightmares, too. As she looked down at Elsa, the thought occurred to her that, perhaps deep down, Elsa still felt like a little girl, scared and trapped and unsure of the future, and that's why she had nightmares. But that didn't explain why the nightmare was about _her_. She decided that maybe, if she felt brave enough, she would ask Elsa in the morning.

She looked back down at Elsa, whose face had started to slip into a distressed frown once again as she slept. Worried that she might be having another nightmare, Anna started to hum a gentle tune she remembered their mother singing to them when they were girls, back when they shared the same bedroom. She smiled slightly as Elsa seemed to calm down once again. Anna decided that she would stay up. She couldn't let Elsa have another nightmare. Not after seeing what it had done to her. She would stay up all night if she had to.

* * *

Early the next morning, as the sun began to rise, before Elsa had even begun to stir, Anna quietly slipped from her sister's sleepy grip and got out of the bed. She paused as she turned towards the door, turning back and pressing a soft kiss to her sister's forehead. "I love you, Elsie." As soon as she had whispered that, though, Elsa began to stir, so Anna quickly and quietly left the room, shutting the door behind her.

She walked slowly back to her room, rubbing her arms. She'd started to feel chilly at some point during the night, but had written it off, deciding there was just a draft. She went into her bedroom and looked over to where her dress for the day hung. With a sigh, she began to get dressed. Today was already going to be long, but now it would be longer, since she hadn't gotten any sleep. But that wasn't important. The important thing was that Elsa felt safe now, and that _she_ had gotten a good night's rest. She would need it more than Anna did. Anna always managed to find energy somehow.

As she finished dressing, she heard the door down the hall open. Before she could change her mind, she ran to the door and opened it, stepping out into the hallway just as Elsa approached her door.

Elsa seemed a bit startled, and she tugged her gloves over her hands, making sure they were secure. "Anna," she acknowledged her sister with a polite, albeit too proper, nod.

"Elsa." Anna followed Elsa as she walked down the hall, staying a pace behind her. She forgot everything she'd decided about not bringing last night up, and spoke gently. "Are you okay? I mean… after last night? You seemed so upset and terrified."

"Whatever are you on about, Anna?" Elsa didn't even break pace as she spoke to her sister, nor did she turn to look at her. That was typical. Elsa never acknowledged her unless she had to for some reason.

"Last night… You…" Anna decided to try and tiptoe around the fact that she'd been in her sister's room, at least for now. "You were crying and sobbing and… you were so sad and upset, and… Don't you remember?"

"Remember what, Anna? I don't have time for your superfluous talking, today is a very busy day. You know that."

Anna paused. So Elsa really didn't remember anything that had happened. She didn't remember the nightmares, the screaming and crying, the sobbing. She didn't remember her sister holding her and comforting her as she tried to calm her down. Well… Anna supposed that was for the better. She wouldn't bring it up, if Elsa wasn't going to remember. She didn't want to be the one to inform her sister that she'd gone into her room without her express permission.

"Nothing. Never mind. It must have been in my head." Anna blinked back tears silently. How she wished she could show her sister how much she loved her. "It's not important, anyways…"

* * *

**This was the final installment, and it was the day before the movie came out.**

**I hope you enjoyed all of the ficlets.**

**If you'd like to see me write a drabble or ficlet of your own choice, simply send it to me here, or you can send it to me on my tumblr, which you can find the link to in my profile.**

**Thanks for reading!**


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